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Seattle cuts hours at two beaches due ‘dangerous activity’

Golden Gardens, Alki Beach to close at 10 p.m.

By Vonnai Phair, The Seattle Times
Published: May 16, 2023, 7:32pm

SEATTLE — Seattle Parks and Recreation will again reduce the hours at two of Seattle’s most popular beaches, citing “dangerous” and “illegal” behavior at the two parks.

Nearly all Seattle parks are open from 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. year-round, but starting May 26, Golden Gardens in Ballard and Alki Beach in West Seattle will close at 10:30 p.m. through Sept. 3.

Hours will return to 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 5, the department said.

Parks staff, along with Seattle police, will begin closing down the two locations at 10 p.m. each night.

The initiative to reduce hours is part of a pilot program to help determine the best operating hours for the parks, according to the department. The pilot program began last year, with both parks closing at 10 p.m. during the summer. The two parks adopted similar hours in 2021 through an emergency order.

Seattle Parks and Recreation said the shortened hours will help address dangerous and/or illegal behavior “typical of summer evening uses at these two parks,” and is in response to public input and nearby community complaints.

The announcement of shortened hours comes days after a man was fatally shot near Alki Beach over the weekend.

In 2021, after vaccinations against COVID-19 became widely available, hundreds of people gathered at Alki Beach in May. The gathering was inspired in part by viral videos on TikTok and other social media apps promoting “Adrian’s Kickback,” a massive party.

Police closed the beach after making three arrests when a strong-arm robbery and “multiple fights and assaults” occurred.

Gatherings at Alki Beach also turned violent in June 2021 after a fight over fireworks broke out, leaving one person dead and three injured.

At Golden Gardens in June 2021, a drive-by shooting took place after two groups got into a road-rage incident as another party, advertised through TikTok, was winding down.

In 2017, police found more than 20 rounds after a late-night shooting at Golden Gardens.

Parks commissioners will review the pilot program after the summer.

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